Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday participated in the 553rd birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev at the residence of National Commission for Minorities chairperson Iqbal Singh Lalpura. After offering prayers, the Prime Minister greeted the Sikh community and the country on Guru Nanak jayanti that falls on Tuesday.
He said that during his days as a party worker, he had spent time in Punjab and had the opportunity to visit Harmandir Sahib a number of times. He said inspired by the Guru’s thoughts, the country is moving ahead with the spirit of welfare of 130-crore Indians.
The Prime Minister was felicitated with a siropa and a sword on the occasion.
“I consider it my honour to have had so many opportunities to gain the blessings of the Gurus. We recently celebrated the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singhji, the 400th birth anniversary of Guru Teg Bahadurji, and also the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanakji three years ago. In recent years, there have been so many achievements that the country has made with the blessings of the Gurus,’’ said Modi.
The PM said that as the world is facing so many challenges, the importance to follow the path shown by the Guru weighs all the more.
“As you know I recently went to Mana village in Uttarakhand where I inaugurated a ropeway to connect Govindghat with Hemkund Sahib. Similarly, Vande Bharat Express was started to reach Anandpur Sahib,’’ said the PM.
“It is difficult for me to express in words what I felt when after having waited for decades, the Kartarpur Corridor was opened. Our effort has always been to strengthen the Sikh traditions and culture,” he said. The PM also added that his government had declared December 26 as Veer Bal Diwas in honour of the supreme sacrifice of the Sahibzadas.